The Fiesta Dolls are characters featured in the Mexico Pavilion's dark ride at Epcot's World Showcase.
Background[]
The fiesta dolls are citizens of the Mexico Pavilion in Epcot who live in a dark ride in a section representing what Mexico is like in modern times. Most of these figures are child-like dolls which live in a recreation of what Mexico is like in modern day in a ride tied by a boat and a river. The outfits they wear include cultural Mexican clothing - more specifically in the style of folklorico dances such as sombreros, charro outfits, or huipils, which are used to represent what Mexico is like in today's world.
Development[]
The fiesta doll figures were developed for the former attraction El Rio del Tiempo at the Mexico Pavilion where they were displayed during the second act representing Mexico in modern time since the attraction first opened on October 1, 1982, the day Epcot opened. They remained in this section over the years prior to its closure on January 2, 2007. The attraction later reopened on April 6, 2007 as Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros. While many elements from the predecessor were removed from the attraction, the dolls in the current incarnation remain the same function they did in the predecessor.
Appearances[]
El Rio del Tiempo[]
The dolls appear all throughout this attraction, representing of what Mexico is like in modern day during the attraction's second act. They can be seen dancing, playing instruments, riding a horse, hitting a piñata, holding skeleton puppets, or carrying a decoy bull decorated with fireworks around it, followed by four mariachi skeletons playing instruments above a bridge the guests pass through. As guests pass by, they are vocalizing "Vistas de Mexico" which plays throughout the rest of the ride. The next section after the room consists of a montage of various places found across Mexico in real life throughout the ride.
Gran Fiesta Tour Starring The Three Caballeros[]
The dolls appear in the current incarnation of the attraction, representing of what Mexico is like in modern day during the attraction's second act. The only exception is that the ride's story itself focuses on Panchito and José Carioca searching for Donald all across Mexico. Like in the predecessor, they can be seen dancing, playing instruments, riding a horse, hitting a piñata, holding skeleton puppets, or carrying a decoy bull decorated with fireworks around it, followed by four mariachi skeletons playing instruments above a bridge decorated with the words "Fiesta Hoy" ("Fiesta Today" in Spanish) that guests pass through. Unlike in the predecessor, they do not have any vocals, due to the "Vistas de Mexico" theme being replaced by "The Three Caballeros" playing throughout the ride.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- The way the animatronic dolls move and dance throughout both incarnations of the ride - El Rio del Tiempo and Gran Fiesta Tour, are reminiscent to the way the dolls move in the It's a Small World attraction at the neighboring Magic Kingdom park. Additionally, some of the sun faces seen at the end of the room (which the predecessor lacked) have a striking resemblance to the Mayan-themed sun from most versions of "It's a Small World" in the section representing Mexico.
- In the current incarnation of the Mexico Pavilion's dark ride, a Donald Duck-shaped piñata is seen being used by the dolls throughout the ride to match its Three Caballeros theme. The predecessor version of the ride features a star-shaped piñata in the aforementioned scene - although in both cases, they both use the same functions, albeit with a different piñata in both versions.